Saline memory

I walked on the beach as a child My prints were small and hurried Excited steps fed my way Testing the cold beast That would tempt me In and out, each silver back Threw out its arms Was it love? My eyes could see for miles The horizon lay its blanket A glowing redness smiled Which I returned politely Its lips mouthed a cryptic verse In the voices of a million men Who fell in time Lured by this angelic shape Now in my quiet moments I return My prints lost to a lasting tide Devoured Until its next suitor, dreams